US Federal Funding Announced for Community-Based Participatory Research

Posted by on December 10, 2004

The US federal agencies below have collaborated in the release of this new program announcement on Community Participation in Research (PAR-05-026). Proposals will be accepted once a year – with deadlines on May 17, 2005, 2006 and 2007. See below for more information. For complete details, visit <a href="http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-05-026.html">http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-05-026.html</a>.

The ultimate goal of this PAR is to support research on health promotion, disease prevention, and health disparities that is jointly conducted by communities and researchers. For additional resources on CBPR, please visit <a href="http://depts.washington.edu/ccph/commbas.html">http://depts.washington.edu/ccph/commbas.html</a>. To stay on top of the latest CBPR news and announcements, subscribe to the CBPR listserv at <a href="https://mailman1.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/cbpr">https://mailman1.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/cbpr</a>.

Community-based participatory research (CBPR) is defined in the PAR as scientific inquiry conducted in communities and in partnership with researchers. The process of scientific inquiry is such that community members, persons affected by the health condition, disability or issue under study, or other key stakeholders in the community’s health have the opportunity to be full participants in each phase of the work (from conception – design – conduct – analysis – interpretation – conclusions – communication of results). CBPR is characterized by substantial community input in the development of the grant application (<a href="http://www.niehs.nih.gov/translat/cbpr/cbpr.htm">http://www.niehs.nih.gov/translat/cbpr/cbpr.htm</a>).

Community-partnered approaches to research promise to deepen our scientific base of knowledge in the areas of health promotion, disease prevention, and health disparities. Community-partnered research processes offer the potential to generate better-informed hypotheses, develop more effective interventions, and enhance the translation of the research results into practice. Specifically, involving community and academic partners as research collaborators may improve the quality and impact of research by:
*More effectively focusing the research questions on health issues of greatest relevance to the communities at highest risk;
*Enhancing recruitment and retention efforts by increasing community buy-in and trust;
*Enhancing the reliability and validity of measurement instruments (particularly survey) through in-depth and honest feedback during pre-testing;
*Improving data collection through increased response rates and decreased social desirability response patterns;
*Increasing relevance of intervention approaches and thus likelihood for success;
*Targeting interventions to the identified needs of community members
*Developing intervention strategies that incorporate community norms and values into scientifically valid approaches;
*Increasing accurate and culturally sensitive interpretation of findings;
*Facilitating more effective dissemination of research findings to impact public health and policy;
*Increasing the potential for translation of evidence-based research into sustainable community change that can be disseminated more broadly.

For the purpose of this PAR, community refers to populations that may be defined by: geography; race; ethnicity; gender; sexual orientation; disability, illness, or other health condition; or to groups that have a common interest or cause, such as health or service agencies and organizations, health care or public health practitioners or providers, policy makers, or lay public groups with public health concerns.

Community-based organizations refer to organizations that may be involved in the research process as members or representatives of the community. While not an exhaustive list, organizations as varied as Tribal governments and colleges, state or local governments, independent living centers, other educational institutions such as junior colleges, advocacy organizations, health delivery organizations (e.g., hospitals), health professional associations, non-governmental organizations, and federally qualified health centers are possible community partners.

This PAR invites NIH research project grant (R01) and exploratory/developmental grant (R21) award mechanisms. The total amount to be awarded depends on the scientific merit of applications and the funds available at the participating NIH Institutes/Centers.

The anticipated number of awards is contingent on their scientific merit and the funds available in the general funding pool of the participating NIH Institutes/Centers.

Eligible organizations include for-profit and not-for-profit, public or private organizations, units of state and local governments, eligible agencies of the Federal Government, domestic or foreign institutions/organizations, faith-based or community-based organizations, and Native American tribal organizations.

Eligible principal investigators are any individuals with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research. The number of applications each applicant may submit is unrestricted.

The PHS 398 application instructions are available at <a href="http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs398.html">http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs398.html</a> in an interactive format. For further assistance contact GrantsInfo, Telephone (301) 435-0714,
Email: GrantsInfo@nih.gov.

The participating federal agencies are:
National Institutes of Health
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Components of the participating federal agencies are:
Office of Behavioral and Social Science Research
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
National Cancer Institute
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
National Institute of Mental Health
National Institute of Nursing Research
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health